Nervous wreck?

Batas Mauricio

WHO is this candidate for a top position in the May 2016 national and local elections who is being reported as having nightmares and sleepless nights as the campaign season started on Tuesday? I was told this candidate is now suffering from extreme nervousness and anxiety and would usually call out aides even during the wee hours of the morning.

I have my guess who this candidate is, but reading news accounts give me a clearer idea that this is the candidate who already spent hundreds of millions just for media advertising alone, has long ago mobilized thousands and thousands of supporters from almost every nook and cranny of the country, and yet still has no clear assurance of victory.

My advice to the candidate? Do not worry too much, or you may lose your sanity as the days go by. If you are going to be allowed to win by God, there is nothing your opponents can do to rob you of that victory. If you are going to be allowed to be defeated by God, there is nothing you can do to reverse that defeat. You must pursue your campaign, in the spirit typifying a fraternal organization from UP Diliman, which always shouts “fight, fight.”

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I guess that leaders of the Liberal Party must exercise extreme caution in talking about the chances of their standard bearer, Mar Roxas, in the upcoming electoral exercise, especially in public. If they have nothing to say that would boost at least the morale of their candidate, they should say nothing at all.

I am referring to the statement attributed by a national daily newspaper to re-electionist Senate President Frank Drilon, quoting him as saying that LP leaders are worried by the consistent low ratings of Roxas in surveys conducted by reputable survey firms.

Even if the report also quoted Drilon as saying that the LP is now doing something about this, the impression it gave is that the party is having nightmares and sleepless nights over Roxas’ chances, which is not really flattering and is unfair to Roxas. It is in fact something that could create further alienation of voters from Roxas, because they may think of voting for someone else instead since a vote for Roxas will not really benefit him anymore.

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So, if bribery and corruption are not part of Christian culture, as Manila Archbishop Luis Cardinal Tagle said at the 51st International Eucharistic Congress in Cebu City, does that mean that Filipinos are not part of Christian culture, and are not really true Christians, because bribery and corruption are admittedly rampant anywhere in the Philippines?

And since bribery and corruption are not just rampant but practiced widely here, it is clear that there is no one that is qualified to be elected president, vice president, senator, or as any other government official in the 2016 elections. I mean, we may hedge and quibble a lot about many of those aspiring now but, isn’t it true that there is really no one that did not succumb to any bribery or corruption of one sort or another in the past?

So what then is the ultimate remedy so Filipinos can elect a truly clean official, one that has proven himself or herself immune from bribery and corruption, especially from big businessmen who, early on, have already bribed and corrupted each and every important candidate with huge financial contributions necessary to wage a successful campaign? Can anyone give a suggestion on this point, please?

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Did you know that there are certain types of marriages that, though they were celebrated, are considered void from the very beginning just the same? Under Art. 35 of the Family Code of the Philippines, these marriages are void from the very beginning: one, those contracted by any party below 18 years of age, even with the consent of the parents or guardians.

Two, those solemnized by any person not legally authorized to perform marriages unless the parties believed in good faith that the solemnizing officer had authority to marry them. Three, those solemnized without licenses, except marriages where licenses are not required. Four, bigamous and polygamous marriages, except where there is absence on the part of the original spouse of one of the parties.

Five, those contracted through mistake of one contracting party as to the identity of the other. Six, subsequent marriages by a party whose original marriage was declared void under Art. 36 of the Code, and yet who failed to fulfill the reporting requirements of the same Code.

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Here is another set of Biblical verses that prove that even people who originally did not belong to God’s nation can become a part of His people as well. Taken from Acts 2:38-39, these verses actually confirm that once a person becomes a child of God, no matter if he comes from afar, he becomes a part of God’s nation.

The verses say: “Peter replied, `Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call…”

Of course, the big, big question here is this: who were those that the Lord our God called from afar? Biblically, they are those who accepted and believed in Jesus as God and Savior, and who are therefore given the right to become children of God, and, because they are saved by the blood of Jesus, are entitled to become “blood kin of the Christ.” Are you?

E-mail: batasmauricio@yahoo.com